Energy: Oil

Lord Dykes: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	Whether they will consider appropriate measures to reduce internal oil consumption in the United Kingdom following the deficit in North Sea crude oil terms of trade in the second half of calendar 2005.

Lord Sainsbury of Turville: Oil is a globally traded commodity and therefore the UK's recent crude oil trade deficit does not reflect a potential disruption to domestic supplies. As part of the Government's Climate Change Programme, various policies are in place to promote energy efficiency across the economy, including the road transport sector where most oil is consumed. These include EU-level voluntary agreements with car manufacturers on the fuel efficiency of new cars and company car tax rules. In addition, the Government recently announced the creation of the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) to introduce renewable fuels into the transport system. The RTFO announcement said that, by 2010, oil companies would be obliged to ensure that 5 per cent of the fuel they sell is made from renewable biosources.

Fluoride

Earl Baldwin of Bewdley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	In relation to the "safe intake of fluoride" cited in the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 2 February (WA 68–9), whether they have taken account of the concerns expressed in the systematic scientific review of water fluoridation conducted at the University of York in 2000 in respect of infant mortality, congenital defects and IQ; and
	Further to the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 2 February (WA 68–9), why they believe that the "intakes of fluoride above the safe level", which they cite from the report of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2003, are not unsafe; and what meaning should then be attached to the words "above the safe level".

Lord Warner: The authority cited in the discussion of "safe intake of fluoride" in the National Diet and Nutrition Survey report is the Department of Health report on Health and Social Subjects 41, Dietary Reference Values for Food Energy and Nutrients in the United Kingdom. This report was first published by HMSO (London) in 1991, but a revised edition (the sixth impression) was published in 1994 (ISBN 0 11 321397 2). Paragraph 36.8.3 of that edition explains:
	"After 6 years of age it is no longer possible for further exposure to fluoride to give rise to cosmetically significant [dental] mottling but the dental benefit from continued exposure persists. An adult weighing 60kg, drinking 1.1 litres of fluoridated water daily, and ingesting' 2mg fluoride from food would have a daily fluoride intake of 0.05mg/kg body weight (3mg/day). This exposure is less than those associated with skeletal fluorosis and has not been shown to be associated with adverse effects. Intakes of fluoride of 0.05 mg/kg body weight daily in children aged over 6 years and in adults are therefore safe. Consumers of exceptionally large quantities of tea, in areas with fluoridated water, may have fluoride intakes several times greater (estimated as up to 12 mg/day in a 60 kg adult or 0.2mg/kg/day). Fluoride may be less readily absorbed from tea than from water, but nevertheless the absence of any reports of adverse effects from such exposures in the UK indicates that there is a further wide safety margin above the more usual intakes in fluoridated areas. The systematic review of water fluoridation undertaken by the University of York in 2000 found no evidence of an association between fluoridation and either infant mortality, congenital defects or IQ, but recommended that further high quality research was conducted. We are committed to a programme of further research into the effects of fluoridation on health."

Fluoride

Earl Baldwin of Bewdley: asked Her Majesty's Government:
	On which scientific studies they base their statement in the Written Answer by the Lord Warner on 2 February (WA 68–9) that urinary fluoride excretion over 24 hours is largely determined by fluoride intake in the previous few days, rather than by a lifetime's accumulation.

Lord Warner: A number of studies of the absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of fluoride, which have been published in the scientific literature, are summarised in the Toxicological Profile for Fluorides, Hydrogen Fluoride, and Fluorine published in September 2003 by the US Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry at www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp11.html. This review notes that,
	"Urine and blood samples can be analyzed to find out if you have been exposed to fluorides . . . This will show if a person has been exposed recently to higher-than-normal levels of fluorides . . . The test must be performed soon after exposure because fluoride that is not stored in the bones leaves the body within a few days."